OMG! Fat beagle

[Amanda]

This dog belongs to an acquaintance whom I am friends with on facebook. I don't know her well, but she feels close enough to me to offer to babysit my kids. (Wouldn't happen.) Should I say something about the size of their dog??? He's HUGE! She posted these pics tonight...

[maxs_mommy]

OMG! That's so sad! I wouldn't even know where to begin but I feel so bad for that poor dog! He has to be miserable!

[JudyL]

Oh, dear God! That makes me angry and sad all at the same time. I'd have to say something.

[Sabine]

Wow, that's bad. Poor dog. How can he even move and keep himself clean?

Yes, I would say something. Leaving the dog in this condition is animal abuse (so is letting him get to be in such a bad shape, but that's beside the point).

[connie]

I would say something because the dog's health is compromised by its weight.

[QBert]

oh, honey.
I wonder sometimes if people feed bouncy dogs to shut them up and then once they're so obese they don't have any energy, they seem to be "good" dogs now and easier to live with...

[emmas_mom]

I'd definitely say something - that goes beyond just overfeeding, it borders on abuse. Perhaps you can phrase it as a question, like "I couldn't help noticing how terribly overweight your dog is - has he been checked for a thyroid condition?"

[SherriA]

Oh, I'd definitely say something. That dog has to be in pain just trying to move around.

[UpwardDog]

UGH. Poor dog. How do you phrase it?

[Amanda]

How does this sound?

Hi D...,

I was admiring your pics of J with your puppy dog tonight. I couldn't help but notice how much weight your beagle boy is carrying. Has he been checked for a thyroid condition? I don't want to be presumptuous and I hope you aren't offended that I asked. He's super cute and I love the spots.

~Amanda

[whiteboxerboy]

i think that sounds good.

it's not easy to approach someone in regards to their obese dog but i think you did a good job. i wish you could throw in a sentence about how uncomfortable the dog HAS to be / the health aspect & shortened life... i suppose you can offer that info to her if she replies to your original comments.

good luck. i think it's great you're trying to help.

[SherriA]

If she's open to listening to you, feel free to point her to pics of Oliver. He wouldn't be active and healthy at 17 if I didn't work to keep him at a good weight. It's hard to say no to those beagle eyes (don't I know it!) but it's so important for their long term health.

[Amanda]

I sent her a PM. I actually saw her today, but chickened out saying anything in person. I really hope I don't offend her. I think I couched it well in compliments on other things, so hopefully it's ok. I would venture to guess that a thyroid issue has never entered their minds and it's probably just overfeeding anyway. But maybe a medical concern is enough to trigger some action to make him lose some weight.

[connie]

If they say the thyroid is fine, I've had really good results with the approach of 'oh, my dogs used to be fat and they didn't even eat that much, and then I found out the food I was feeding was full of stuff like corn and wheat!' (Okay, my dogs were NEVER nearly that fat, but I will lie through my teeth to make a point.)

As much as people don't like to be lectured about how they are caring for their animals, they do love to share problems and swap suggestions for solutions. I try to take that line whenever possible. And I guarantee you, the owners of that dog know it's fat and they know that's not good. I suspect they just don't know how to address the problem, the dog probably begs food from them with great success, and I would bet too that they're feeding a really sub-par food. And that they think a more expensive food is just a waste of money because the dog will eat the same amount of it.

If you can walk them through those points, Amanda (and I know you can ), I bet you'll help that dog out a lot.

[connie]

Oh, and I shamelessly breed-blame, too. "Shelties gain weight just LOOKING at food!" "I've never met a hound that didn't have extra weight, I swear they need so little food!" Of course, the breed is not the cause of the obesity, but it makes the owner feel less under attack.

And then I push the raw-veggies-as-treats line, too. Even now, many people are amazed by the idea of dogs eating raw vegetables with enjoyment.

[RobinS]

My parents have a Min Pin who, when they adopted her, was the ideal weight of 10 pounds. She now weighs 22 pounds. I have lectured them to death, as well as their vet. My Mother refuses to take responsibility, says it is all Dad's fault and he says it is all her fault. In their minds, food is love. My Dad won't even say she is fat, he says she is "nice and square". Their vet has told them the dog will have very short life being more than twice her ideal weight, they just ignore it, continue to feed her lots of bad kinds of table food on top of her crappy dog food.

So, if it were me, I wouldn't say anything unless they brought it up to me in a conversation.

[Amanda]

Turns out he does have a thyroid condition. She thanked me at church today for saying something. She said her mother-in-law has said things before too, but it took someone outside the family for her to hear it. He's lost 5 pounds and had a dental, too. They also discovered a mouth infection during the dental that is now being treated and she said he just seems happier now. I'm glad I said something and that she wasn't offended. I bet her MIL is annoyed that it took someone else saying something though. . Now we can just hope that my email to my cousin's gf about not turning their 10 month old baby forward facing goes over as well. Yikes!

[connie]

What a satisfactory outcome -- esp for the dog! LOL!

[emmas_mom]

Great news - Hopefully Beagle Boy will soon be feeling great and the pounds keep dropping off.

[JudyL]

That is great news. I'm happy that the beagle is getting treated. He is going to feel so much better.

Hmm, maybe I should get my thyroid checked.

[SherriA]

I'm so happy to hear this! Thanks, Amanda, for speaking up.

[PofiMia]

I think you handled it just right and her positive response proves it!

[EllaBella]

Yay! Glad to hear they took your advice and the dog must be feeling SO much better.

Forward face a 10 month old?!?! I'm pretty sure that is illegal, first of all. The AAP say's 2 years rearfacing now if at all possible. Did you send the terrifying youtube videos? (Yes, Kieran is still rearfacing at over 3 because of those).

[Amanda]

It is illegal. I sent a CNN article with the new AAP recs and a note saying, "I know the law is one year and 20 pounds, but you may want to read this." She's young... 18, I think. I'm afraid to push her too much as she's still in the "don't tell me what to do" phase of life. She thanked me for the article. Not sure what she'll do, but now she at least has the info...

[maxs_mommy]

Glad to hear the Beagle got checked and is getting treated! Good for you!

[Bettyna]

Yay! I'm glad the beagle is getting some treatment.

[Jen]

What a great outcome!

Good luck with the front facing baby.